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Special arrangement of the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme
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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited (HKMC) announced today (May 30) the introduction of a special arrangement under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme (SFGS) to help local enterprises adversely impacted by the Japanese earthquake to tide over the difficult times.

     The special arrangement, coming into effect on June 1, 2011, will last until December 31, 2011.  Eligible enterprises will receive a waiver of three months' guarantee fee for loans with tenor of three years or less, and a waiver of six months' guarantee fee for loans with tenor of more than three years.

     To be eligible for the special arrangement, an enterprise should fulfil the following requirements in addition to the existing eligibility criteria under the SFGS:

(a) the enterprise must be either a Japanese restaurant or running other businesses related to Japanese products or services; and
(b) the enterprise must provide evidence of a drop in business turnover by more than 30% (or a lower level, subject to approval on a case-by-case basis) in any single month since March 2011 as compared with the monthly average business turnover of the six-month period before March 2011.

     The Executive Director of the HKMC, Mr Peter Pang, said: "In consultation with the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, the HKMC is pleased to offer this special arrangement to render assistance to enterprises affected by the Japanese earthquake.  We believe that the special arrangement should help such enterprises in obtaining bank financing to meet their funding needs."

     Details of the special arrangement are set out at Annex.  For public enquiries, please call the SFGS Hotline (Tel: 2536 0392).

Ends/Monday, May 30, 2011
Issued at HKT 16:35

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